PREPARING FOR THE NEW YEAR

There will be no new blog post over Christmas. Breathe... enjoy time with your family and friends. If you have an inclination to do some work for this course, here's what your energy should be spent on:

1. CULMINATING PORTFOLIO - be sure all your marked assignments have been corrected and placed in a folder marked with your name and the title Culminating Portfolio. Share this folder with me if you have not already done so. It is due Jan. 21st or Jan. 25th at the latest.

NOTE - I would like to publish 2 or 3 pieces from each class member in a class book. These should be creative prose or poetry, and can be course assignments or something new. I will be asking you about this when we return.

2. YOUR BLOG - Take the time to go back to each of your past posts and make the suggested corrections if you have not already done so. This does not mean rewriting anything, just corrections to spelling, grammar and punctuation. It is due Jan 16th.

3. COLLABORATIVE WRITING - Each member should take a share of the agreed upon task. Get the text into a computer, get the images and layout organized. When we have draft versions of the children's books ready I will arrange to visit kindergarten classes to test the stories. Finished products by Jan. 21st.

JANUARY NEWSLETTER - We were caught with a very short submission timeline for the next school newsletter, and there will be little news in the way of school events. So we are doing an issue on "Student Voice". I have submitted the following;
- Emma's Mission article in an abbreviated version
- Toby's value of exercise article in an abbreviated version
- Matteo, Sierra, Jackie, Kim & Nadia - excerpts from your blogs on Grit and Growth Mindset
- Shelby, Renzel & Megan excerpts from your blogs on The Future

TO PROTECT AND SERVE

"Hey, hey. Ho, ho. These killer cops have got to go." (chant on NY streets this evening)

Ferguson, Missouri protestors

"Protect and Serve" is the motto of the LAPD, the OPP's motto is "Safe Communities, A Secure Ontario" and the Guelph Police Service  slogan is "Pride - Service - Trust", but can citizens feel safe when confronted with police officers? The Free Thought Project website suggests that Americans are more likely to be killed by a US police offer than a terrorist. Mint Press News, an online news service, reports that US police have killed 5,000 civilians since 9/11. This week protests erupted in New York City because a white police officer was not charged for the choke-hold death of an unarmed black man named Eric Garner. For the past several weeks the town of Ferguson, Missouri has suffered violent rioting because a white police officer shot Michael Brown, an unarmed black man, 12 times.

Just in case you think this only happens to black citizens and residents of the United States...

In July 2013 a bystander video recorded a Toronto police officer shoot Sammy Yatim (a white youth who was on a Toronto streetcar with a knife) 9 times and then tasered his inert body. Then in August 2013 RCMP officers went to the home of Josee Valiquette on Cold Lake Alberta’s First Nation’s reserve with the intent of arresting him, when a fight broke out Valiquette was shot dead. And just in case you think using tasers instead of guns is the answer, Robert Dziekanski was tasered to death at the Vancouver airport in 2010. Robert did not speak English and a witness video documents the aggressive police response to his failure to comply.

NYPD body camera pilot project

British police officers traditionally do not carry guns. New York City police a testing body cameras, initially to protect officers against wrongful accusations of excessive force, but knowing they are on camera has been found to modify police behaviour. 

Here's your reflection question: If you were on a consulting committee to a police force, what would you suggest as a means to address the problem of police officers killing unarmed citizens? Is this a matter of improved training, restricted weapons, stronger consequences following incidents, or something else?

Don't rant. Don't ramble. Develop a clear, concise statement of opinion.

Facing The Future

Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today. - Malcolm X , Muslim Minister and Human Rights Activist

American Diplomat

President of the U.S. and abolitionist.

THE TASK - As a graduating student you are facing a myriad of decisions that will impact your future. Post a reflection on "Facing The Future". Find a quote about the future and identify who the individual is. Explain your philosophy and how the chosen quote holds meaning for you.

Children's Author

EXAMPLE:

I have measured my life path against siblings and peers. I believe that the decisions I have made, about education, relationships and employment have led me to a life that I treasure. I had parents who tried to tell me what career to pursue, life partner to select and how to raise a family. I made my own choices, often contrary to their preferences, because I know that only I can create my future. I was raised to believe in myself and make conscious choices that will lead me to my goals. I don't think that one's FATE is predetermined, I think opportunities present themselves, sometimes in a very serendipitous manner, and it is in our power to act upon those chances or not.

Slammed By Poetry

Truth Is, Beth Anne and Fannon Holland

Kaitlyn, Megan and Sierra served as judges at the Guelph Spoken Word, Poetry Slam on Saturday night at the E-bar. Among the ten competitors, Fannon Holland knocked us off our seats with his content and delivery, and was awarded the $100 prize. Dan Murray was close at Holland's heels with his angry memories of elementary school track-and-field meets. A memorial video tribute to Zaccheus Jackson Nyce and spotlight performance by Guelph poet Amelia Meister added to an already entertaining evening.

The next Slam is Saturday, December 20th and will feature humourous poems.

How Can You "Remember" What You Didn't Experience?

Gen. Romeo Dallaire

Dr. Bill Winegard

On Monday, retired General Romeo Dallaire came to Lourdes and challenged you to get the dirt of a foreign land on your boots. By this he meant that you should experience first-hand the challenges faced in another part of the world, as he did in Rwanda. He expressed hope that mankind will achieve peace and suggested your generation, the global citizens, could accomplish this.

On Tuesday, we travelled to the Sleeman Centre were Dr. Bill Winegard pointed out that we lost more soldiers to suicide following their tour of duty in Afghanistan, than we did during the conflict itself. He criticized the Canadian government to expecting citizens to serve their country in war/peace-keeping and then abandoning them, and their families when they returned home with physical and mental health issues as a result.

What are your thoughts?

(use your notes from Monday if you have some)

Due by Saturday, November 15th at 8:00am

Below is the email Mr. MacPherson received about the Sleeman Centre Event.

Dear Sir,

 I was at the Remembrance day ceremony today at the Sleeman's centre and was sitting by myself when all of a sudden a bunch of kids from your school showed up and sat next to me surrounding me. All I honestly thought to myself is "Great I am not going to hear a word being spoken and they are going to be loud and obnoxious" 

 Well I must say I truly owe your students an apology, as they were not loud, rude or obnoxious. They were quiet, and very respectful of the ceremony.  The students that attended from  your school should  walk with their heads held high with pride.  They acted and behaved better then most adults do and it was a pleasure sitting with them. 

 In this day and age where teenagers get a lot of bad rap, I think it should be acknowledged when they are just plain good kids. 

 Sincerely,

Shirley Power

HALLOWEEN RANT

Post an opinion, a rant of sorts, expressing your views on the value of Halloween. Is it pagan cult, encouraging devil worship, or clean family fun? It is crass commercialism enticing us to buy cheap goods and unhealthy treats, or is it an opportunity for self-expression, community spirit and creativity? Pick ONE side and create a concise argument in favour of you view.

Finish this post by Friday, November 7th at 3:00 pm.

Slam Poet Guest Speaker - Oct. 29

Elora-based Slam Poet Racheal Walser

Racheal Walser is an fiction writer, poet and collage artist living in Elora. Her work has been included in numerous publications across North America. She will be presenting to our class on Wednesday, Oct. 29 to demonstrate her Slam Poetry skills and share with us videos by a couple of her favourite Slam Artists.

The content or Racheal's work, and the videos she will share by Asia Samson and Andrea Gibson are infused with raw emotion. Topics touch on depression and lost loved-ones, yet offer strong messages of hope and inspiration.

"I have friends, few, but friends all the same, that are self-motivated. They are initiators, self-sustaining moulds of motivation. And occasionally, we sit in coffee shops for hours talking about what we're working on. But I love it, every coffee, every conversation. These are the best days." RW

Slam Poet Videos that Racheal shared with us:
Andrea Gibson "The Madness Vase"
Asia Samsom - "Awakening"

Poetry Conclusion

WHAT IS POETRY TO YOU? WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED  FROM WRITING IT?

"Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought 

and the thought has found words."

Robert Frost, 1874-1963, American Poet

"Poetry is the rhythmical creation of beauty in words."

Edgar Allan Poe, 1809-1849, American Poet and Author

"Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: 

it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility."

William Wordsworth, 1770-1850 English Poet

"Poetry is thoughts that breathe, and words that burn."

Thomas Gray, 1716-1771, English Poet

"If my poetry aims to achieve anything, 

it's to deliver people from the limited ways in which they see and feel."

Jim Morrison, 1943-1971, American Songwriter and Musician

This post should be completed by midnight on Saturday, October 25th.

Lourdes' October Newsletter

The first issue of our new school newsletter has been published. Congratulations to the following contributing authors;

Sierra Martin - "Let's Get Physical"

Nadia Martins - "Our Buddies Are The Best"

Anh Pham - "Robotics Program Has Big Plans"

Emma Pickering - "New Technology At Lourdes"

Click the link below to see the layout. Authors should secure a hard copy from the office.

October Issue - OLOL Newsletter

Two stories that were submitted, but not used due to space, will be sent forward to the November issue. Those interested in participating should ask about potential assignments.

John Lennon's Birthday - Oct. 9, 1940

Cheers to Emma for finding this Lennon quote. Let's do a reflection on school assignments. How can you, as the manager of your own education, ensure that school assignments meet your needs? Is there are way to meet the instructor's expectations, while also following your own interests? Your positing in response to this is due by 8pm on Wednesday, October 15.

The results of the Student Voice Survey are posted in the class folder. You will also find a Poetry Assignment folder which holds the two slide shows and the rubric for this unit. The requirements for the Poetry Task are on the rubric form, a hard copy of which will be provided on Tues. Oct. 14. The due date for this task is Mon. Oct. 24. Mini lessons, ongoing editing support and class time for writing will be provided from Oct. 14 to Oct. 22.

An Author And A Quotation

For your next posting the challenge is to find a quotation about writing that resonates with you.
a) give some basic information about the author, and include a photo if you can
b) list the quote
c) explain why this quotation has meaning for you.
Remember that there are many quotations to choose from within the lesson presentation in our class folder.

Jack Kerouac (1922-1969)

Jack Kerouac is a French-Canadian author who is known for a style called "spontaneous prose". You hear his name bandied about whenever literature is being discussed, but I will admit that I have not read anything he has written. He lead a radical life tainted by substance abuse and dramatic relationships. When I finish the book that is currently on my bedside table (another French-Canadian author, Louise Penny) I will ask the school librarian to recommend a Kerouac novel for me.

“One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple.” 

― Jack Kerouac, The Dharma Bums

To me this quotation rings true because I believe I try too hard to write well. I agonize over finding the perfect word or sparkling figure of speech. There is a story of Kerouac fastening paper together so he had a continuous roll to feed into his typewriter, thus allowing him to write without the disruption of feeding pages into the machine. In my current writing course the instructor challenges us to write without stop for given periods of time. I've switched from handwritten to my laptop because gripping a pen stresses me, and it is wonderful that word-processing is indeed like an endless page. I just need to stop over-thinking everything.

Are You Motivated By Competition?

Consider entering a piece of your writing in the Alpha Short Story Contest. It's not a big task and you have a month to complete the work, but we need to register you now. Prize - iPad  mini.

Theme: The Best or Worst First Day Of School

Length: 500-750 words (2-3 double-spaced pages in 12 pt font)

This is an OPTIONAL task for which I will give you extra credit and editing support.

Dialogue Task

We've discussed the punctuation rules for writing direct speech and practiced developing a written conversation with a classmate. Now your task is to write a story that features dialogue. Check the class folder for;
1. Task Guidelines
2. Assessment Rubric
3. Story Starters

This task will require that you have a peer edit your work (before I do) and that you edit someone else's work. The deadline for the final product is the end of class on Friday, Oct. 3. Don't wait to the last minute, begin now.

I am trying to pace our assignments with a sensitivity to your workload in other courses. Remember, if you are writing something for another class, you can ask me for editing support and I can give you credit for it as an additional assignment. Video tutorials for MLA and APA formatting are in the class folder. Google Docs will automatically insert footnotes for you.

Are You Organized?

If you check the shared class folder on Google Drive you will see that I have organized the contents into folders;

- ASSIGNMENTS - so far Tell A Story" & "Awakening"
- COURSE INTRO - has the course overview and introductory ppt
- PRESENTATIONS - the Power Points about writing
- TUTORIALS - short videos on how to use Google Drive

To create folders to organize your own work, use the "CREATE" drop down menu (shown to the right here) and select folder. It will let you name it. I suggest that you make a folder for this course and have it contain;
1.  a folder for each of your assignments, where you can put various drafts and ideas for further work
2. a folder for your Culminating Portfolio, where you put the corrected pieces of writing after you have received back your assessment rubrics

Stay on top of the work. Be organized.

Gratitude Note

DUE SEPT 21 - Mr MacPherson shared the video "The Science of Happiness". The link is below. Let's conduct our own experiment... write a short memo to someone whom you value. Tell them what positive influence they have had on your life and express your gratitude. (I've included mine)

"The Science Of Happiness: An Experiment In Gratitude"

Dear Tom,

I just wanted to pause for a moment and tell you how much I value your presence in my life. After 40 years together it is easy to fall into a routine of taking my most precious friendship for granted. I hope you know that you are my most valued collaborator and the shoulder upon which I can always find support. The daily tasks that you take on for the management of our shared household, are vital in order that I may be left with the energy to pursue the career that I love. Your commitment to my aging parent is beyond value as is your on-going mentoring of our "adult" offspring. I cherish the opportunity to share your warmth, both emotionally and physically. My gratitude is beyond words.

MR

Now...if you really want to replicate the experiment, share your posting with the person you are addressing. Paste it into an email and send it to them, print it and mail it or read it to them. It takes courage. You might want to wait for my comments. It's always nice to get rid of those pesky typos before sending it to the intended audience.

An Awakening

Assignment Two: Awakening is to write an introductory paragraph in which the main character has an awakening. You are free to let your imagination soar. You don't need to dwell on a clear depiction of character this time, just intrigue the reader. Hook us with your creative language and unique situation. Be careful...several of you seem to want to tell the story. This is just the opening paragraph, stick to description of the situation and hints about what might be going on.

What is your awakening?

EDITING
1. I will do your first edit, but it must to me by end of class on Wednesday.

2. You need to get one classmate to do a second editing. Share the story with them. Hopefully they will be helpful to you, but I am interested in seeing what they have done so...each class member needs to edits one paragraph, let's not all ask the same individual.

3. If you get the paragraph to me in by end of class Thursday, I will do an OPTIONAL third edit, this is particularly for those people who struggled with Assignment One.

Submit the assignment through Google Docs with the file title "Name: Awakening". The rubric is in the class folder so you can check expectations.

Censorship: What is Acceptable To Write?

This week we reviewed an article about a student who was arrested for including violence in his creative writing assignment. The question to reflect upon for your next blog posting is whether or not there needs to be censorship of what is written. Is everything acceptable? If not, where is the line that must not be crossed and who sets the rules? It has been common throughout the history of literature to have books "banned". The "Harry Potter" series has been the focus of much concern in this regard, as certain parents and religious groups object to the presentation of magic and the glorification of witches, wizards and other "dark" themes. Check out two minute video of authors' views at the link below. This post is due on Tues., Sept. 16.

Banned Book Week: 13 Authors Speak Out.

NOTE: I am now "following" your blog. This means I will get a notification whenever you write a new post. This will save me checking repeatedly and will help me avoid missing anything. You would be wise to "follow" the class blog. To do so notice the Reading List on the window when you first sign in. Click on the ADD button and put in this address: ololwriterscraft.blogspot.com and "publicly" follow so I can see who is on top of this task.

If you want to follow a classmate's blog you will find a "Follow" button adjacent to their About Me section. This should be located near the top right of their blog. I have removed it from the class blog.

First Assignment Due

Your first piece of writing is due by the end of class Friday, Sept. 12, unless you have made other arrangements with me. Please read the checklist below to ensure that you have done what is expected:
1. You should have had at least one draft edited prior to final submission.
2. Please label the file with your Name - and the Assignment Title.
3. Read the rubric, which is in the shared folder, to evaluate whether you have met the criteria.

Good luck and git 'er done!

Tell A Story

It's just like telling a story verbally.

The Power Point presentation from Thursday has been placed in the class folder on Google Drive.
Your first task is to think of an entertaining story, from real life, and write it down as if you were telling it to a group of friends. Think about the following;
- make it amusing or build suspense
- tell it from an "omnipresent" perspective, you see, hear and know everything
- don't fret over spelling and grammar...yet

You must have a first draft done by Wednesday, Sept. 10, but if you get it done earlier, pass it along to me and I will give you feedback.

Persistence = Success - Check this video

The Key to Success, Grit


If this link doesn't work for you, go to Youtube and search "The Key to Success, Grit" it is a Ted Talk by Angela Lee Duckworth.

Write an introductory blog entry. In it you should;
- introduce yourself and your interests either related to writing or other apsects of life
- comment on the Ted Talk Video and how the concepts discussed there relate to you

Your first post needs to be completed by Monday, Sept. 8th.

Nine people have not completed this task as of 8:45 on Sunday night. Three people have only completed one of the two questions assigned.  It's about grit people:)

PS - I know that there is at least one typo in my comments. I too am not perfect.